An agent apparatus which presents an image of an agent within a vehicle, which actively engages in communication such as conversation with a user and senses a condition of the vehicle is proposed in the Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 11-37766.
In use of the agent apparatus, for example, the remaining quantity of fuel such as gasoline, light oil, or the like is detected, the detected quantities immediately prior to the past five refuelings are stored, and when the average value thereof is reached, time to refuel is announced by the agent.
In such an agent apparatus, the more information on a user is collected, the more information desired by the user can be provided and the more conversations can be carried out. Accordingly, it is important for an agent apparatus to collect as much information on a driver as possible.
However, in the various agent apparatuses previously proposed, the user himself/herself inputs each item of information, e.g. hobbies and preferences, as driver information as an initial step when the use of the agent apparatus is commenced.
As described above, since the prior art apparatus is dependent on the input by the user to collect the driver information, the burden of inputting on the user is large, even when only the bare minimum of information (essential input items without which a startup is impossible) is obtained.
The present invention seeks to solve the above problem, and it is an object of the present invention to collect information on a driver to the extent possible while placing the smallest possible burden on the driver.